


Give Me a Chance

by Bandgeek18



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Bonding, Minor Character Death Mentioned, Pre-Season/Series 01, Some Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-13
Updated: 2017-11-13
Packaged: 2019-02-01 15:17:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12707571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bandgeek18/pseuds/Bandgeek18
Summary: Barry meets a reporter and wants to go out with her. There's only one problem though. Her nephew hates him.





	Give Me a Chance

**Author's Note:**

> So I tagged this as an AU since its definitely not how Barry and Wally met. I thought it was a cute idea though. Enjoy!

The day Barry Allen met Iris West he almost spilled evidence on her. It was a typical crime scene call. Put out markers, take pictures, gather the evidence. So routine he could’ve done it in his sleep. Which was probably why when he left, he tripped over his own feet and landed right on someone. 

“Oof!” the person beneath him muttered. 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I should’ve watched where I was going and I have a lot of cases today and my captain is always telling me to hurry up and-“ Barry noticed the woman for the first time. Particularly how beautiful she was. She smiled at him in a very amusing way. 

“It's fine.”

“I’m really, very sorry.”

“Trust me as an investigative reporter, getting run over by a forensic scientist isn’t even on the Top 10 Worst Things that’s happened to me.”

“Investigative reporter? That’s….awesome.” 

“Thanks.” The woman cleared her throat. 

“Huh?” She cleared her that again and nodded her head at him. “What- oh! Right, sorry.” Barry got up and would’ve helped her up, but he realized that he'd dropped his evidence. “Shoot, where did that go?” He started looking around wildly, head swiveling around. 

“Ahem.” Barry turned around. The investigative reporter was holding his evidence bags. “I think these belong to you.”

“Thank you so much, my captain gets really mad if we lose this stuff.”

“I imagine it’d be hard to solve the crime without it,” she smiled as she handed him the bags. 

“Well...yes it would be but we’ve solved cases after losing evidence before- well after I lost the evidence actually…”

“You lost evidence?”

“Lost is a strong word, misplaced really. I mean we still got the guy confessing so the forensic evidence really isn’t necessary-“ She was giving him that amused smile again and Barry suddenly decided that it was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. “Uh…” He held out his hand, but it was the hand holding the bags. “Whoops.” He switched hands. The reporter laughed and shook her hand. “Barry Allen.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Very sure.”

“As long as you’re sure, I’m Iris West.”

“If I wasn’t sure would you be someone else?” Iris laughed again. 

“Would you like to go out with me sometime, like tomorrow night? We could see a movie, or dinner, or the activity of your choice.” 

“I really wish I could, but I don’t think I’d be able to. I have a parent-teacher conference tomorrow.”

“Parent-teacher conference? Do you have kids?”

“One, well he’s not my son actually, he’s my nephew. Can I take a rain check?”

“Of course!” 

Iris smiled and pulled a pen out of her pocket. “Give me call in a few days,” she scribbled a number onto Barry’s hand. “we can work something out.”

“Awesome! I’ll call you!” It took all of Barry’s self-control not to super speed out of there as he left. ’She didn’t say no, she just has other plans. That’s all.’ Getting a pretty girl agreeing to go out with him pretty much made his week. He was true to his word though, he called her two days later. His free hand bounced nervously off his leg as it rang. 

“Hello?” Someone answered. Definitely not Iris, a young boy. 

“Hi, this is Barry Allen- hello?” He looked at his phone and discovered the call had ended. “Uh…” He redialed and his hand started bouncing even more nervously. 

“Hello?” Iris asked. 

“Iris, its Barry I just called and uh…”

“I’m sorry about that. Wally’s only 7.”

“It's fine. Kids will be kids. I was actually wondering if you’d like to go see a movie with me this weekend?”

“I’d love to.”

“You would?” Barry jumped to his feet and started racing around his lab in joy. He stopped and took a moment to calm himself. “That’s great, so I’ll see you Saturday?”

“See you Saturday.” 

The week passed by in a blur, even for Barry. By the time Saturday arrived he was buzzed on a high of excitement. Which why when his phone rang and he saw it was Iris he answered it without hesitation. “Hey, Iris.”

“Barry, I’m so sorry, but I need another rain check.” 

“Why?”

“Wally doesn’t feel good. He hasn’t even gotten out of bed-“

“Don’t worry about it. Take care of him. How about dinner on Wednesday?”

“Dinner would be amazing.”

“Alright, Wednesday it is.” 

“See you then.” 

Barry spent the next few days trying to distract himself from his two missed dates. He caught bad guys as the Flash and fought the Rogues. It was mid-day Wednesday when he got another call from Iris. 

“Please don’t say you’re canceling on me again,” he joked. 

“I’m sorry Barry,” Iris replied. 

“I-I was joking.”

“I’m really sorry, but Wally needs my help with a school project. I thought he was working on it all week but he needs my help and I’ve been really busy at work-“

“It’s fine. School comes first. We can set something else up.”

“Ok, thanks, Barry.” 

They tried to set up lunch the following weekend, but Iris canceled because Wally was sick again. Then they tried to see a play the next week, but Iris canceled on him again. A month and five canceled dates later, Barry was more determined than ever to go out with her. So, one Saturday afternoon he called her up. “Hey Iris,” he greeted. “It's Barry. Would you like to go see a movie tonight?”

“Tonight? I don’t know if I can get a sitter-“ she began, but an idea suddenly popped into Barry’s head and out of his mouth before he could stop it. 

“Wally can come with us!” 

“You want Wally to come with us?”

“…..Sure. Why not? We can go see the new Robin Hood movie.”

“He’d love that.”

“Great, so I’ll pick you guys up around 7?”

“I’ll text you my address. We’ll see you then.” 

As soon as Barry hung up he started running in a circle around his living room. “I got a date! I got a date! I got a date! I got a-“ he tripped over his coffee table and face planted into his rug. He sat up and grinned at no one. “I’ve got a date!” He was so excited that he changed his outfit three times and showered twice before he left. Iris’ address arrived just as he was getting to his car. In between leaving his apartment and heading to her place, his heart was pounding in anticipation, waiting for her to call and cancel. When it didn’t happen by the time he pulled up to her building he was so excited he needed to keep himself from vibrating or super-speeding up to her apartment. Barry took a deep breath to calm himself, then knocked on the door. It opened half a minute later and a red-haired boy looked surprised to see him. “Hi, I’m-“ The door slammed shut in his face. “Uh…” It opened again and Iris gave him an apologetic look. 

“I’m really sorry about that,” she apologized. 

“It's fine.” 

“Come on in.” Barry walked in and immediately saw the boy. He was peeking out from behind the wall. Barry smiled as he approached the kid. 

“Hi, you must be Wally.”

Iris chuckled. “Wally, come say hi to Barry.” 

Wally came out around the corner and walked towards Barry slowly, his hands hidden shyly behind his back. Barry held out his hand. “It's nice to meet you.” Wally suddenly smiled. 

“Nice to meet you,” he replied sweetly, swiftly moving one hand out from behind his back and into Barry’s. Instantly, Barry yelped and jerked his hand away from the boy’s as something zapped his palm. Wally laughed loudly and Barry noticed the buzzer in his hand. His spine tingled, suddenly reminding him of the last time he’d helped Batman with Joker. 

“Wally!” Iris scolded. 

“It was just a joke Aunt I,” Wally replied innocently. He smiled sweetly at her. “I didn’t even hurt him.”

“It’s ok,” Barry assured Iris. He didn’t want to get the kid grounded an have that jeopardize their date. Besides, it was just a joke. He prided himself on having a good sense of humor. To illustrate the point he even laughed. “He’s just being a kid.” 

“Go put that away and get your shoes on,” Iris told Wally. The boy ran off and Iris turned to Barry. “I’m really sorry.”

“Its fine Iris, really. I was a kid too once.”

“Let me see your hand.” 

“It's really ok.” Iris took his hand and studied it closely. Barry was quiet for once as she looked at it, enjoying how soft and gentle her touch was. 

“It looks ok.”

“See? I told-“ Barry jumped back suddenly as Wally popped up between them. 

“Aunt Iris, are we leaving?” he asked her, ignoring Barry completely. 

“Yes. Mr. Allen is coming with us to the movies.”

“He’s coming too?!” 

“Yes, Wally.”

“We should get going,” Barry told them. “We don’t want to be late.”

“Come on Wally.” Wally took Iris’ hand and she led him out the door. 

— —

When they got the movies Barry bought their tickets, so Iris offered to buy the popcorn. “Why don’t you two go get seats?” she suggested. “I’ll meet you in there.”

“Got it,” Barry nodded. He and Wally walked over to the entrance of the theaters. Right before he got there though he realized he didn’t know where his ticket was. “Hang on a second Wally…” He quickly searched his person and found it in his back pocket. “Got it! Ok now-“ Barry froze. Wally was gone. “Wally. Wally? Wally?!” His heart started pounding and he danced back at Iris. She was still in line for popcorn and thankfully not paying attention to him. ‘Ok, Barry don’t panic. Don’t panic. He’s probably in the theater. Yeah, yeah that’s it.’ Barry handed off his ticket, then made his way into the theater quickly. “Wally? Wally?” He moved down the rows, finally finding Wally sitting in the middle. “Wally! You wandered off! You can’t do that!"

“You’re not the boss of me,” Wally replied evenly. 

Barry opened his mouth, then closed it. The kid had a point there. “Still…. You’re safe that’s all that matters. Your aunt would kill me if I lost you.”

“Really?” Wally’s tone confused Barry, but he brushed it off. 

“At least you got us some good seats.” Wally had snagged the last three seats in the row. That’s when Barry noticed the kid was sitting in the middle seat. 

“Can I sit in the middle?”

“No.”

“Please?”

“No.”

“But I wanted to- Fine…” He could’ve sworn he saw the kid smirk a little bit as Barry sat down next to him. Iris joined them and handed out their popcorn and drinks. The rest of the movie was without incident. Barry was disappointed he hadn’t been able to sit next to Iris and couldn’t hold her hand or put his arm around her. Wally walked between Iris and Barry as they left the theater, talking excitedly to his aunt about everything he’d loved about the movie. (Spoil alert: it was the whole thing.) By the time Barry got Iris and Wally home, the boy bounced out of the car and up the steps like he was the energizer bunny. Iris smiled at Barry. 

“Thanks for tonight,” she said. 

“I had a blast. Maybe we can go out again-“

"Aunt Iris!” Wally called from the front steps of the building. “Hurry up!” 

“How would you like to come over for dinner on Tuesday?” Iris asked. 

“I’d-“ Barry began but was interrupted.

“Aunt Iris!” 

“I’d love to,” Barry finished quickly. “Really.”

“Great then I guess-“

“Aunt Iris!” Wally called. 

“See you Tuesday.” Iris walked away before Barry could say anything else. He watched her go inside and could’ve sworn he saw Wally glare at him before the door shut. 

— — 

“It couldn’t have been that bad,” Green Lantern laughed. 

“It was awful,” Flash replied. 

“What was awful?” Superman asked he joined them at the meeting table. 

“I went out with Iris yesterday-“

“Finally,” Green Arrow smiled. They’d all had bets going about how long it would take their resident speedster to finally go out with the woman he wouldn't shut up about. “How’d it go?”

“It was great except her nephew hates me.”

“I’m sure he doesn’t hate you,” Superman said. 

“He slammed the door in my face, shocked me with a hand buzzer, made me think he was lost, sat between us at the movie, where I swear he smirked, then glared at me before he went inside. He hates me.”

“He’s like what…6?”

“7.”

“He’s a kid,” Green Arrow shrugged. “Kids can be like that.” 

“Really?”

“Sure,” Green Lantern agreed. “I bet the next time you see him, the kid’ll love you!”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely! I promise!”

— — 

Tuesday night, Barry knocked nervously on Iris’ door. When it opened this time it was Iris who answered. “Hi.”

“Hi Barry,” Iris smiled. “Come on in.” Barry walked in and she shut the door. “Dinner isn’t ready yet, but if you want you can go hang out with Wally. He’s doing an experiment in the living room.”

"An experiment?”

“He loves science.”

Barry smiled. ‘Science! Yes, that’s the perfect way to get him to like me!’ He nodded eagerly. “Guess I”ll go see what he’s experimenting on.” Iris chuckled and pointed him through a doorway. Wally was sitting on the floor with a bunch of beakers on a small tray spread out in front of him. He carefully poured half the contents of one into another, then stirred it. “Hi, Wally.”

Wally looked up. “Hi, Mr. Allen.”

“You can call me Barry, Wally.” Wally looked back at his chemicals. 

“What’re you doing?”

“Experimenting.” He poured more of another chemical into the first one.

“What’s your experiment about?” Wally shrugged. “Need any help?” Barry’s brain got immediately concerned when Wally smiled at him. 

“Sure. Stand right there.” He directed Barry to a piece of plywood on the floor. 

“Here?”

“Yup. Stay there.” Wally picked up the mixed chemical and brought it over. Barry got even more nervous as the boy walked towards him. Before he could say anything, Wally poured the chemical on his shoes. Barry winced, expecting it to hurt but it didn’t. 

“Sorry kiddo. Looks like it didn’t-“ A hissing sound reached his ears and he smelled something. “What-“ He looked down at himself and almost fainted. The soles of his shoes had melted to the wood! Wally laughed while Barry tried, unsuccessfully, to move. ‘I didn’t think he hated me enough to kill me!’ 

Iris walked in at that moment. “Wally!” she gasped.

“I think he melted my shoes,” Barry smiled unconvincingly. He bent over to untie them.

"Your shoes?!”

“I didn’t know it would melt his shoes,” Wally told his aunt innocently. Iris looked at him. “Really Aunt Iris, I would never want to hurt Mr. Allen.” 

Iris sighed and gave her nephew a hug. “I’m just glad no one got hurt.” Barry stood up straight and step out of his shoes. He glanced at Iris and Wally and was momentarily taken aback. Wally was smirking at him over his aunt’s shoulder. Barry opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Iris stood up. “Let’s go eat dinner, then we can clean up this mess.” 

“Good idea,” Barry agreed nervously. They went into the kitchen and Wally immediately sat so he was between Iris and Barry. When Iris’ back was turned he glared at Barry. Barry swallowed. Iris came over with plates and Wally’s expression quickly morphed into an innocent smile. Barry’s eye almost popped out of his head. 

‘Oh shit,’ he thought. 

— — 

“You can’t be serious,” Batman said. Flash could practically hear him rolling his eyes. 

“I’m telling you Bats, the kid was evil.”

“Are we talking about Iris’ nephew?” Green Lantern asked as he joined them. 

“He’s evil!” 

“Barry he’s 7,” Superman pointed out. 

“He melted my shoes! I’m pretty sure he did it on purpose!” 

“Flash-“

“He’s a diabolical mastermind! He’s probably planning to kill me!”

“He’s a kid!” Green Arrow laughed. “I don’t think he could!”

“You don’t know that!”

“You’re just imagining things Flash,” Batman told him. “Stop overreacting.”

Flash sighed. ‘I hope he’s right.’

— — 

The following week Barry finally, finally got to have alone time with Iris. He took her out to dinner and talked about their respective jobs. Iris detailed her best assignments and Barry got halfway through his grizzliest murder scene when he realized it wasn’t the best dinner conversation. When he dropped her off at her place, she invited him upstairs for a drink before he went home. Always the gentleman, Barry agreed. He slipped his shoes off by the door, not noticing Wally watching him from down the hall while Iris paid the teenage girl who’d been babysitting. He followed Iris into the kitchen and she handed him a soda.

“Sorry,” she apologized, flashing her beautiful smile. “Its all we have.”

Barry shrugged as he opened it. “Fine with me.” Wally came into the room and gave Iris a hug. 

“Hi Aunt Iris,” he said sweetly. The kid’s innocent tone immediately had Barry’s guard up. 

“Hi Wally,” Iris laughed, wrapping an arm around him. “Were you good for Linda while we were gone?”

“Of course. Can I have a drink?”

“You can have juice, it's too late for soda.”

“Thanks!” Wally ran over to the fridge and Iris turned back to Barry. 

“You were telling me about the case with the frog?”

“Huh? Oh, right!” Barry launched back into his story, missing how Wally looked back at them cryptically and grabbed something additional from the fridge that wasn’t just juice. The two of them talked for another couple hours before Barry saw the time. “I should go.” 

“So soon?”

“Those crimes won’t solve themselves tomorrow. Good thing too, or I’d be out of a job!” 

Iris laughed. “Come on, I’ll walk you out.” 

“You know, I had a really great time with you tonight.” Barry grabbed one of his shoes. 

“Me too.”

“We should do it- what the hell?!” Something thick and warm was squishing into the bottom of his sock as soon as he put his foot in his shoes. 

“What?!”

Barry pulled his foot out, dragging brown strands of the viscous liquid with him. “Syrup?” 

“How did syrup get in your shoes?!” 

Somewhere in down the hall, Barry could’ve sworn he heard giggling. “Can wash them in your bathroom?”

“Absolutely. Down the hall and on the left.”

“Thanks.” As Barry walked he tried to ignore the way his foot stuck to the ground with every step. He was so focused don what he was doing that the sudden, sharp pain in his other foot took him completely by surprise. “Ow!” he shouted, jumping back. This only increased the pain though and he quickly put all his pressure on the other foot. Iris came running around the corner. 

“What happened?!”

“I stepped and then it hurt and….ow!”

“Let me see.” Iris helped him hop into the kitchen and sit down at the table. She lifted up his foot and found a small, silver tack stuck there. “I found the problem.”

“What is it?”

“Hang on a sec.” Iris dug her nails under the tack head and pulled it out in one swift motion. Barry cried out a little bit, but it the pain went away quickly. “There, that should be- your foot’s bleeding.”

“Its ok,” Barry said quickly, putting his foot down. “It's a small hole it’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course.”

“I”m sorry about that tack. I must’ve dropped it at some point today and not realized it.” Barry noticed Wally watching them from the doorway behind her. The boy smiled and disappeared into his bedroom. "Barry, what’re you looking at?” Iris turned around, but of course, Wally was gone.

“Nothing. I just…need to get my shoes clean.”

“Right. Let’s go clean them up.”

— — 

The following week, Iris invited Barry over again. Wally was outside most of the time, running around the parking lot of the building. At some point he came back inside for a drink, then went back out. 15 minutes later he came in again and disappeared into his room. Barry found it suspicious, but nothing out of the ordinary happened for the rest of the visit, so he shrugged it off. This turned out to be a bad idea once he left and went downstairs. His keys fell out of his hand and his mouth dropped open. Someone had egged his car. He sighed and shook his head. ‘Why does this kid hate me so much?!'

— — 

The next time Barry went out with Iris, they took Wally out to lunch. Wally made sure to sit between the two adults, once again preventing Barry from being able to hold her hand. To make things worse, Iris’ phone rang in the middle of it. “Hello?” she asked. “Right now? Yes. Yes, yes, I understand. I’ll be right there.” 

“You have to go?”

“Yes.” Iris stood up. “Come on Wally.”

“I’m not done.”

“I know kiddo, but we have to go.”

“Why don’t you leave Wally here with me?” Barry asked before his brain could tell him to stop. 

“Are sure?” 

Barry glanced at Wally, who was watching him intently. He swallowed, then smile. “Of course! We can finish lunch and then I’ll take him home.” 

“As long as it's not a problem.”

“No problem at all.” 

“Ok. Thank you.” She stood up and kissed Wally’s head. “Be good.”

“I will,” Wally smiled. Iris left and Barry kept a close eye on Wally while he ate. The kid didn’t try anything though, so he relaxed. They finished and Barry grabbed the check. “I’ll be right back.” 

“Ok.” 

Barry paid for their lunches and get a box for iris so she could finish hers later. He returned to the table and his heart stopped. Wally was gone. “Wally?” He bit his lip nervously. ‘He’s probably in the bathroom. Yeah, yeah, that’s it. He’s just in the bathroom.’ That’s what Barry kept telling himself for 10 minutes. Finally, he got up and actually checked the bathroom. “Wally?” he asked, poking his head inside. “Wally? You in here?” No answer and both stalls were empty. ‘Ok, now I can panic.’ Moving as nondescriptly as possible, Barry left the restaurant and looked around. “Wally?!” His mouth was dry. Wally was nowhere to be seen. “Wally?!” He swallowed. “Ok Barry, think, think.” Unfortunately, he was thinking, and his inner forensic scientist was thinking about all the bad things that could happen to an unattended 7-year-old in Central City. “Wally!” His muscles were screaming for him to put on his suit and search with superspeed. “No, no, I don’t need the Flash. I can figure this out. He’s on foot, he couldn’t have gotten far.” Randomly closing a direction, Barry started walking. He craned his neck around, trying to see if he could catch sight of Wally. There was nothing. 

‘Oh god, Iris is going to kill me! I lost her nephew, she’s going to murder me!’ Barry was so busy panicking he didn’t realize he’d passed Iris’ apartment building until he did. He froze. ‘Wait a minute!’ Without wasting any more time, he crossed the busy street and walked into the building. He took the stairs three at a time to the fourth floor and ran, without superspeed, to their apartment. “Wally?” he asked, knocking on the door. No reply. Barry checked in the place where Iris had shown him she hid a key. It was gone. Barry sighed in frustration. He glanced around. The hall was empty. Before he could change his mind, he started vibrating and quickly phased through the door. Once he was through he patted down his clothes as they smoked. Fires out, he walked into the living room and found Wally watching tv. “Wally!” Wally looked at him, then looked back at the tv. Barry walked over and crouched down in front of the boy. “What the hell?!” Wally simply tried to look around him. “Hey!” He grabbed Wally’s shoulders. “Why did you leave the restaurant?!” 

“How did you even get in here?!” Wally demanded with eyes narrowed. “I took the spare key.”

“You didn’t lock the door,” Barry lied. “Wally, why did you do that?! You could’ve been killed! You could’ve been kidnapped!”

“You’re not the boss of me!”

“While your aunt is at work I’m responsible for you.”

“Well, I don’t want your here!” Wally pushed Barry’s hands away and stood up. “So just leave!” 

“Why are you acting like such a brat?! Iris told me you were a good kid!”

“I don’t like people trying to steal my aunt!” 

“What?!” 

Wally glared at him. “You’ve lasted longer than the other ones did, but I’ll find a way to get rid of you too. Aunt Iris is my family, go get your own!” Wally stomped out of the room and a few sounds later Barry heard a door slam. He sighed and sat down. 

‘He hates me! He hates me! Why does he hate me?!’ Barry sighed. He stood up and turned off the tv. ‘When Iris gets back, I’m telling her about Wally’s behavior. He might be a kid, but this is unacceptable.’ Luckily Iris was only gone for a few hours. When Barry heard the door unlocking he stood up, mentally preparing what he was going to tell her. She walked into the living room and smiled at him. 

“Where's Wally?” she asked. 

“In his room,” Barry answered. 

“His room?” Why did she look concerned about that? "How was he?”

Barry rubbed his neck. “I need to talk to you about that. See-“

“Oh no. I was afraid of this.” 

“You were?!” 

Iris nodded, then gestured for Barry to follow her. He followed her into the kitchen and she pulled a small photo album out of a drawer. “I never told you why Wally is living with me.”

Barry thought about it. “No, you didn’t.”

Iris sighed. “Two years ago, my brother and sister-in-law, Wally’s parents, they were killed in a car accident.” 

Barry’s mouth went dry. “What?”

Iris nodded as she turned around. She set the photo album down. “They were coming home from a new exhibit at a science museum Wally had been dying to see. It was raining a lot and it was dark. There was a drunk driver in the other lane who swerved and-“ She stopped suddenly and Barry put an arm around her. “Wally was in the hospital for a few days becasue of a broken arm, a mild concussion, and a piece of metal that was imbedded in his side. His parents they….they just didn’t make it.” 

“Iris I’m so sorry.”

Iris wiped her eyes. “After the accident Wally was….he wasn’t the same. He was so depressed and unlike the sweet little boy I’d always known. Last year was really hard for both of us. This year though…he’s gotten better. He’s adjusted to living here with me and he’s doing well in school again.” 

“You think what happened today has to do with his parents dying?”

“Last year he would shut himself in his room for hours. I’ve never left him alone with someone he doesn’t know that well. It must've caused him to react badly.” 

“You said this was two years ago, so Wally was…”

“5, yes.” 

“5…?!” That was so young to lose his parents. Barry suddenly remembered what Wally had said to him earlier. ‘Iris is my family, go get your own.’ He suddenly felt like a huge asshole. Of course, Wally didn’t like him. The kid had lost his parents when he was in kindergarten and Iris was his only family. No wonder he didn’t want Barry in the picture.

“This is them.” Barry looked down. Iris had opened the photo album. The photo in question was of a man with dark hair and a woman with red hair sitting next to him. Wally was sitting in the man’s lap, proudly holding a trophy. “That’s Rudolph, my brother, and his wife Mary. This was after Wally’s first science fair. He got first place and was so proud of that trophy. It was taken a few weeks before the accident.”

“I’m really sorry for your guys’ loss Iris.” He gave her a hug and she returned it.

“Thank you.” When she pulls away she gave him a curious look. “Other than going into his room, did Wally do anything else?”

Barry swallowed. “Nope. He was great.”

— — 

Two weeks later, Barry got a call from Iris while he was at work. “Hello?” he answered. 

“Barry, are you busy?” Iris asked. 

“Why?”

“I just got an assignment I have to go cover and Wally’s getting out of school soon. I was wondering if you could go sit with him at the apartment?”

Barry swallowed. Since learning about what had happened to his parents, Barry had given Wally a lot of leeway about his behavior. Unfortunately, that hadn’t stopped the boy from pouring hot sauce into Barry’s food and his soda last time he was there. “Uh…”

“Please? I just… I don’t want him to be alone today.”

“Sure. I’ll be over there in a few minutes.”

“Thank you.” 

Barry hung up and quickly made excuses to his sergeant about why he needed to leave. Thankfully he was actually caught up on all his cases, so he only got a few odd looks and eyes rolls. ‘Why did I say yes?’ he wondered. ‘This kid doesn’t even like me. If something’s wrong then I don’t think I’m going to make it better.’ It was too late to back out now. He had to go see Wally and make sure the kid was ok. When he got the apartment he didn’t notice anything that out of the ordinary. Thankfully, the spare key was hidden where it always was and he was able to get inside. There weren't immediate signs of something being wrong when Barry walked in. “Wally?” he asked cautiously. “Wally?” Careful of any traps, he walked towards the boy’s room. He knocked on the door. “Wally? Are you in there?” There was no response. There something on the other side of the door. A quiet sound that was difficult to make out. Barry put his hand on the door nob and opened it slowly. 

Due to his apprehension of Wally, Barry and never been brave enough to venture near the boy’s room. The first thing that caught his eye was the bedspread, or, more accurately, the giant Flash insignia on it. There was a poster of the flash on the wall, as well as some clippings from newspapers taped to the walls. There were several action figures lined up on a shelf above a bunch of trophies. A bookcase was filled with books that a quick glance told him were mostly science related. There was a lightning bolt shaped rug on the carpet by the bed, which was Wally was currently sitting on. The boy was curled up by his bed with his face buried in his arms, sobbing. Barry swallowed as he approached Wally. “Wally? Are you ok?”

Wally looked up and scowled at Barry. “What’re you doing here?!” he demanded, eyes still glazed with tears. 

“Iris wanted me to-“

"Get out!” Wally threw a shoe at Barry, which he dodged with ease. “Get out, go away! I don’t want you here!” 

“Wally-“ He dodged another shoe. 

“Get out!” All the fight suddenly seemed to leave Wally in a rush, because he fell forward and Barry caught him. The small boy kept sobbing as Barry gave him an awaked hug. At first, Wally pushed him away half-heartedly but then seemed to accept it and gave up. Barry didn’t keep track of how long they stayed like that, with him awkwardly hugging a crying child who hated him. When Wally did eventually calm down he immediately pushed Barry away and wiped his eyes. 

“What’s got you so down kid?” 

Wally looked down. “My…. The accident was two years ago….today…”

“Accident- oh.” Barry’s eyes widened. That was why. He reached out, but Wally pushed this hand away. Barry glanced down, once again noticing the Flash insignia rug on the ground. “I know the Flash!” he blurted out suddenly. 

“What?”

“What?”

“What did you say?”

Barry swallowed. “I-I know the Flash.”

“You do?”

“Yeah. He’s….uh….helped the Central City police with a lot of cases so sometimes he needs my...expert forensic opinion.”

“What’s he like?”

“He’s….well…uh…nice. Yeah, he’s nice and he’s….fast….” 

“Just nice and fast?”

“Great sense of humor.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely.”

“He looks like it.”

"Really?”

Wally nodded sincerely. “The Flash is the best at everything.”

“I wouldn’t say everything….” 

“He is.” 

“I see you’re a….fan of his.”

“I’m his biggest fan.” 

“Are you?”

Wally nodded again. “He’s the greatest hero in the world.”

Barry could feel his cheeks getting warm. “In the world huh? Better than Superman?”

Wally snorted. “Obviously. Way better than Superman.” Barry started laughing. “Are you friends with the Flash?”

“Yes!” Barry cursed his mouth for once again working faster than his brain. 

“That’s awesome. I wish I could be friends with him….” The irony of the fact that Wally wanted nothing to do with Barry Allen, but dreamed of meeting the Flash wasn’t lost on the speedster. 

“You know what Wally, the Flash appreciates all his fans.”

“He does?”

“Absolutely.” Barry suddenly got an idea. “Come on, let’s grab a snack and I can tell you about some of the cases I’ve helped the Flash with.” Wally actually smiled at him, which caught Barry by surprise. 

“Ok.” Which was how they spent the two ours until Iris came home. They ate cookies with milk and Barry detailed cases he had “helped” the Flash solve. Wally hung on his every word, completely entranced by Barry’s words. Occasionally he had a question, but for the most part, listened in silence. When Iris walked in she smiled at the two of them. Wally jumped to his feet when he saw her. “Aunt Iris, Barry knows the Flash!” 

“He does?” Iris gave Barry a look of disbelief and he nodded. 

“I was telling Wally about cases I’ve helped the Flash solve.”

“It's so many Aunt Iris!” Wally informed her. 

“That’s great Wally. Go do your homework while I talk to Barry for a little bit, ok?”

“Ok.” Wally ran to his room and Iris sat down next Barry. 

“Thank you.”

“It was my pleasure,” he replied. “I guess today was kind of a hard day for him.”

“It is. Thank you so much for getting his mind off things.” 

“It was my pleasure. He’s a really great kid.” Even if he hated Barry. 

“You’re pretty amazing yourself.”

“Thanks.” Wally suddenly came running into the room, clutching an envelope. 

“Uh…Mr. Allen,” he said nervously. “Can you give this to the Flash?”

Barry smiled. “Absolutely.” He took the envelope and put it int he pocket of his lab coat- which he just relayed he was still wearing. Dammit, his sergeant was going to yell at him again. 

“Thanks!” Wally ran back out of the room, making Iris laugh. 

“Would you like to stay for dinner?” she asked him. 

“I’d love to.”

— — 

Barry didn’t dare open the letter until he got back to his apartment. He carefully unfolded the paper inside and started to read. 

Dear Flash,

My name is Wally West. I’m your biggest fan. Two years ago my parents died in a car accident. After they died I was really mad because you didn’t save them. You’re the fastest man alive and greatest hero in the whole world! I was really, really mad that you didn’t help them. My aunt told me that I shouldn’t be mad at you though. She told me that even the Flash can’t save everyone and if you could’ve saved my parents you would’ve and that you probably feel bad you didn’t save them. I don’t want you to feel bad. My aunt says the only person who should feel and is the Bad Man. So I’m not mad at you anymore. You’re my hero and when I grow up I want to save people like you.

Your Biggest Fan  
Wally.

P.S.: I don’t like Mr. Allen, but if he’s your friend then maybe he can be ok.

When he finished reading Barry had set the letter down to wipe his eyes. ‘He really is a good kid,’ he thought as he got up to find a piece of paper. ‘He really is.’


End file.
